Automakers are expected to offer greater incentives on sedans and hatchbacks as sales of these models continue to slow. Overall new-car sales fell 1.1 percent in February compared to the same month a year ago, according to Autodata Corp. But sales of passenger cars were hit particularly hard as consumers continued to flock to SUV and pickup trucks.

Slow car demand is leading automakers to add incentives for what are fairly high inventories of unsold vehicles, reports The Detroit News. Passenger cars accounted for 37.7 percent of sales last month, down from 42.4 percent in February 2016. Truck sales were 62.3 percent, compared to 57.6 percent a year ago. . . .

Ford car sales also decreased, even as the Dearborn automaker witnessed a record February for SUV sales, and an increase of 8.7 percent for F-Series pickup-truck sales. Sales of the Focus compact sedan and hatchback fell 31.8 percent, while sales of the Fusion mid-size sedan deflated by 35 percent. In contrast, sales of the Escape compact crossover increased 15.9 percent, while sales of the Expedition full-size SUV shot up 48.2 percent. . . .

Guy [I have lots of experience designing/selling off-grid AE systems, some using EVs but don't own one. Local trips are by foot, bike and/or rapid transit].

The 'best' is the enemy of 'good enough'.Copper shot, not Silver bullets.

Consumption of motor gasoline in the US hit an all-time high in 2016, reaching 9.327 million barrels per day, up 1.6% from 2015 and exceeding the prior peak of 9.286 million barrels per day in 2007, according to revised figures in the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) Monthly Energy Review.

Early in 2016, EIA had projected that US gasoline consumption would remain below the 2007 peak despite an increase in travel, attributing that expected outcome largely to improvements in light-duty vehicle fuel economy.

Guy [I have lots of experience designing/selling off-grid AE systems, some using EVs but don't own one. Local trips are by foot, bike and/or rapid transit].

The 'best' is the enemy of 'good enough'.Copper shot, not Silver bullets.

^^^ DRILL BABY DRILL!! Someone's gotta keep those big oil companies in the red......and it ain't me Gas took a 20c jump in my market today, 40c over the last week, I hope it hits $4/gallon again! although people will still drive 15k+/year in their SUV/Pickups

jjeff wrote:^^^ DRILL BABY DRILL!! Someone's gotta keep those big oil companies in the red......and it ain't me Gas took a 20c jump in my market today, 40c over the last week, I hope it hits $4/gallon again! although people will still drive 15k+/year in their SUV/Pickups

Not if it hits $4.00./gallon, they won't. Unfortunately, higher gas prices seem to be the only thing that will make AFVs more acceptable to the mainstream buyer, and with the national avg. price of a gallon of regular @ $2.37, there's a long way to go before it will start affecting people's buying or driving habits.

Guy [I have lots of experience designing/selling off-grid AE systems, some using EVs but don't own one. Local trips are by foot, bike and/or rapid transit].

The 'best' is the enemy of 'good enough'.Copper shot, not Silver bullets.

25.3 MPG. Just for info, the average price of of gallon of regular in California is currently $3.081. The nearest station to me (1.5 blocks) is $3.26, not that I ever get gas there - my usual station is selling it for $2.96. If prices continue to increase this summer, on top of the $0.12/gallon tax increase that goes into effect Nov. 1st, we'll probably start to see fuel economy being a higher priority, and PEVs being viewed here as cost-effective again.

Last edited by GRA on Tue Jun 06, 2017 5:42 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Guy [I have lots of experience designing/selling off-grid AE systems, some using EVs but don't own one. Local trips are by foot, bike and/or rapid transit].

The 'best' is the enemy of 'good enough'.Copper shot, not Silver bullets.

The average fuel economy (window-sticker value) of new vehicles sold in the US in July was 25.4 mpg (9.25 l/100 km)—up 0.3 mpg from June, according to the latest monthly report from Dr. Michael Sivak and Brandon Schoettle at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute (UMTRI). This increase likely reflects the decreased proportion of light trucks in the sales mix in July compared to June, they suggested. . . .

Still below the all-time high of 25.5 mpg reached in 8/14.

Guy [I have lots of experience designing/selling off-grid AE systems, some using EVs but don't own one. Local trips are by foot, bike and/or rapid transit].

The 'best' is the enemy of 'good enough'.Copper shot, not Silver bullets.